Hardy stopped voicing out his opinion upon seeing the displeased look on her face. It was actually a relief to see Paisley and Ornard joining forces with each other. Hardy was now an abandoned child and the only person that he could count on was his sister.
He hoped that Paisley would be able to persuade Ornard in getting him out of this damned prison.
Paisley knew that Hardy desperately wanted to get out of jail. “Hardy, I’ve always been focused on settling your problems. However, Ornard said that this matter is rather tricky. You should be aware that the old fart is a cunning and manipulative person. He even told me that it is not the perfect timing to take my hand in marriage yet. Hence, it would be much more far-fetched for him to save you from trouble right now. Do wait patiently for a few more days. We shall discuss further after I have successfully obtained the bidding contract.”
“Okay, I will wait for your good news then! Paisley, you must be careful and do not let your guard down. You have to pay extra attention to William’s actions.”
Michael did not receive any reply from Abbie after sending her a text message. He decided to try his luck once again and invited her to have lunch together in the afternoon.
Abbie finally did not give him the cold treatment. The both of them had decided to meet with each other at a private restaurant.
Abbie ordered the dishes as she was the first to arrive. She then occupied herself by browsing social media via her mobile phone. It was seen that the honeymoon of Valeria and William was very eventful. They had taken marvelous photos of the sceneries and precious moments together during their trip.
Abbie had been generous in giving their pictures a thumbs up and a positive comment. She then randomly saw Azalea’s homepage which she had posted a playful status, “The amber and agarwood fragrance of Rojadove has been tickling my sensory nerves. I am extremely pleased and had a pleasant rest during the night!”
The picture that accompanied the words was a man’s watch on the bedside table. Abbie frowned upon looking at it.
This watch was exactly the same as Michael’s. The critical point was that Michael had been using the Rojadove amber and agarwood perfume all this while. Was this really a mere coincidence?
Abbie was lost in her thoughts when Michael soon pushed the door open and came into the private room. He smiled charmingly upon seeing Abbie and reached out to hold her hand. He said, “I thought that I would be the punctual one. I did not expect you to arrive earlier than me. You must have been eager to see me, right?”
“You need to stop getting ahead of yourself. I have arrived not long ago as well.” Abbie withdrew her hand and asked, “Where did you spend the night yesterday?”
“Aren’t you aware that I was in the apartment? I invited you over to spend time with me but you have ignored me. I then waited for your arrival until midnight. You must make it up to me today!”
“Dream on!” Abbie rolled her eyes at him and said, “Let’s have lunch now as I am starving.”
“Okay then. I’ll bring you to a place after we have finished our meal.”
“I don’t have the time to hang out with you after our lunch session. My mother has asked me out to have a facial spa this afternoon.”
“That is such bad timing, right? Let’s reschedule our appointment then. How about you come to hang out with me tonight as I would like to take you to the lake?” Michael served food on her plate and was clearly trying to get on her good side.
“Let’s talk about it later!” Abbie gave a vague answer.
This was an indication that all hopes were not lost yet. Michael was overjoyed and said, “I shall book a boat ride and it would be just the two of us. I would like to give you a surprise tonight.”
“What? Are you trying to use the same method as William in impressing Valeria? I should remind you that it is ridiculous for us to enjoy a round of beautiful fireworks together. I will cut contact with you should others find out about our secret meetup.”
Michael sighed upon hearing about it and said, “Abbie, I’m really sorry! It’s all my fault for putting you in an awkward position! I will scrap the fireworks idea off my plan. I shall think of another surprise for you.”
Abbie decided to put this topic to an end upon seeing him apologizing to her. She then served food on Michael’s plate and said, “Let’s enjoy our lunch for now. I have to leave immediately after the meal.”
She was in the midst of a conversation with Michael when she suddenly received a video call invitation from Helen. Abbie immediately pushed Michael to the side and said, “My mom is trying to video call me. You should get out of here quickly and don’t let her see you.”
Michael obediently stood up and exited the private room. Abbie then answered the video call and greeted, “Mummy!”
“Abbie, let’s cancel our apppointment for this afternoon.”
“Why would you call it off during the last minute?”
“Azalea just came to visit me and said that she would want to spend some time with me. Your time is flexible to hang out with me but things are different for Azalea. Her schedule is always packed and can only visit me once in a blue moon. Hence, I think it would be better for me to spend time with her this afternoon instead…”
“Pfft! Who is actually your biological daughter then? Did you think of my feelings when you decided to stand me up just to meet with her?” Abbie raised her voice before waiting for Helen in finishing her sentence.
“Abbie, I did not intend to stand you up. It is just that Azalea and I have not seen each other for a long time. It is inappropriate for me in declining her request since she had taken the initiative to contact me. You should be aware that Azalea’s father…”
“Alright, that’s enough! You should enjoy some quality time with Azalea then,” Abbie had interrupted Helen once again.
Helen did not know what to do upon knowing that Abbie was pissed off. She then tried to coax Abbie by saying, “I promise to have a lovely facial spa with you tomorrow, okay? I will also buy you a marvelous purse that you would definitely be fond of.”
“No thank you! Goodbye!”
Abbie hung up the video in an upset mood. Michael soon came into the private room and asked, “Why are you so mad?”
“Won’t you feel the same if you are in my shoes? My mom had promised to go for a facial spa treatment with me. However, she had immediately changed her mind after receiving a phone call from Azalea. I’m feeling really pissed about it.”
“Do calm down. Your mother is preoccupied but you are currently with me. Don’t you think that it’s actually a positive thing?” Michael smiled and comforted her.
“The both of these are different situations. I will have no objections should my mother cancel our appointment if someone else had wanted to hang out with her. However, I feel displeased as the change of plan was all because of Azalea,” Abbie furiously replied.
“This is not the first time that my mom stand up to me because of Azalea. It has always been this way ever since I was little. She claimed that I am her biological daughter and we are all a family. Hence, it is wise for us in giving way to Azalea and I am feeling puzzled by it. Why should I deserve to be stood up since I am her biological daughter? Does it warrant me being pushed to the sidelines? Is she really my mother?”
“Do not lose your cool. Your mother is left with no other choices as well.”
“What? Haha. Let us imagine that Azalea and I are having a wedding ceremony on the exact same day. Could my mother attend hers instead of mine since I am her biological daughter?”
“Well… There is a very slim chance for such a thing to happen,” Michael smiled and tried to ease the tension.
“You’re right, it is nearly impossible to have the occurrence of such a situation. However, isn’t it a fact that both of us are having Azalea as our obstacle? My parents and my brother will definitely disagree on the idea of us being together. They would prefer you to be a couple with Azalea. Are you sure that you would still insist on comforting me about it?”
Michael had a sulky look upon hearing about it. Abbie scoffed and tossed her utensils aside. “I’m done for lunch! This is really upsetting!”
The following scene had occurred at the shopping mall in the city center. Helen entered the shopping complex with a smile on her face and locked hands with Azalea, who was wearing sunglasses and concealed herself with baggy clothing.
Azalea was honey-tongued and had a way of impressing others. Helen was extremely delighted as Azalea had deliberately discussed topics that were of interest to her.
The both of them made a halt at a luxurious retailing shop. Azalea then selected a dress for her and said, “This color suits your elegant aura very well. I would like to purchase it as a gift for you.”
“It’s fine, I’ll pay it myself. Azalea, feel free to pick whatever that you please and put it on my tab.”
“Let me take care of the bill. I am lucky enough to be raised up by you ever since when I was a child. I would not be where I am today if it wasn’t for your meticulous care and love. I want to return you the favor since I am finally employed.”
Helen had eventually given way since Azalea had insisted on paying the bill. She gladly accepted the gesture as she assumed that this was a token of appreciation from Azalea. She decided to buy a set of pricey jewelry later as an acknowledgment of Azalea’s kindness.
They had chosen their clothing and Azalea soon settled the bill. They were about to leave when Angel gracefully entered the retailing store.